Making Space for Writing

Carol Browne author of Being Krystyna talks about juggling writing with work and life, and why making more space for writing is her goal for this year.

My number one writing resolution for 2017 doesn’t involve writing per se, but making space for writing.

Many authors lament the necessity of a day job but I was doing okay, juggling mine with writing, until August 2016, when I lost my daily housekeeping job and was forced to take whatever work I could find to keep the bills and rent paid.

Each week, the horror of working in a pub kitchen for minimum wage has taken over four out of seven days, while two more days are halved thanks to cleaning jobs. I also have a couple of proofreading clients to slot in on an as-and-when basis. To this must be added book promo and networking and the day-to-day business of living. It feels chaotic and I haven’t been able to establish a writing routine. This makes me feel jittery and, hence, I become even more disorganised.

A snatched hour or two of writing here and there is as much use to me as a chocolate fireguard. I can’t work like that. Writing is a time-consuming business. It can’t be hurried. It can’t be a frantic clock-watching experience. I don’t want to feel I am running a race against time; my muse won’t respond to a stopwatch or a chequered flag. There’s nothing worse for a writer than to be in full flow only to have to stop to get ready for work, unless it’s to try to write after an exhausting shift in a pub kitchen! If you are exhausted and have lost your edge, your writing will be as tired as you are.

The days when writers and artists could count on the support of wealthy patrons while they created their masterpieces are long gone. So my number one writing resolution for 2017 is to find myself a better job with more convenient hours, not to mention a higher hourly wage. I have a short novel and two novellas awaiting revision and they need my undivided attention!

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About the Author

Born in 1954 and raised in Crewe, Cheshire, Carol Browne obtained an honours degree in English language and literature from Nottingham University in 1976. When not writing fiction and non-fiction, Carol works as a self-employed housekeeper and...

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